Going Backwards - Stormbringer #2

Hello again readers! Ive had some barriers on my internet access so there might be a slight drop in the frequency of posts. However, I will try to give you as much reading material as possible. Here's the full, in-depth review for Transformers: Stormbringer #2...

TRANSFORMERS: STORMBRINGER #2

Written by SIMON FURMAN

Art by DON FIGUEROA

Colors by JOSH BURCHAM

Covers by Figueroa

SYNOPSIS: On Cybertron, Bludgeon proceeds with his plan to remotely nudge Thunderwing's reanimated corpse into attacking and devastating other worlds. Why? Because he feels his fellow Transformers have used and abandoned theirs. Three of the Technobots and Jetfire have been captured and are being lasered apart for components and materials, with the disappearance of their science vessel just now being noticed by Autobot command. Optimus Prime recalls the Wreckers, a specialist strike force, and plans to meet them at Cybertron to investigate the possible reappearance of Thunderwing. He's tormented by the memory of previous events. Elsewhere, the remaining two Technobots survived the destruction of their shuttle but are caught in a weakened state by Centurion drones. On Nebulos, the resident Decepticon infiltration unit witnesses the arrival of Thunderwing!

THE ART: Once again, Don Figueroa shows us just how good he is. His finely executed lines perfectly convey the action and adapt to the mood; from the spiky, organic landscapes of Nebulos to the clean, sterile halls of Autobot Orbital Command, all are beautifully rendered in every detail. Don truly is the master. His Kirby-esque clouds and smoke and awesomely spiky energy is just plain, purely awesome. Now I know why Don has been hailed as the only choice for an ongoing series. And once again Josh Burcham perfectly renders and enhances Don's already top notch artwork. Is is possible that Don and Josh have upped their game since last issue? Impossible, you would say. But Burcham really completes this issue. His colors can make even the most simplistic artwork look like something made a god. And what I still can't believe is that Don did two wraparound covers for this issue! The man is a legend! I could not be more happy with this issue. Exquisite in every detail.

THE STORY: Simon Furman continues to impress us with his quality writing skills. The Marvel-esque dialogue is smooth and realistic, conveying Jetfire's deep broody thoughts. A tad predictable for my taste but still very well done. A cool use of repetition at the start and end (Optimus' reflection on the first coming of Thunderwing). And not stopping at the Technobots, Furman continues to bring us cool, more obscure characters to fill out the cast. The Wreckers, Iguanus, Skullgrin, Finback, Bomb-Burst, Thrust and many more make it nice too read about some bots other than the Sunbow cast. And Dogfight (pictured left)! Awesome little cameo! And more onto the subject, the action is very well-paced and reads like a well-edited movie. Some nice little flashbacks provide further insight into Cybertron's history and the events that made it a barren husk. So while not as mind-bogglingly exquisite as the last issue, Furman continues to impress. So, the result:

ART RATING: 9 out of 10

STORY RATING: 8.5 out of 10

OVERALL RATING: 9 out of 10

ERRORS: The inside cover of issue #2, solicited for August 2006, shows the publish date of the issue as June 2006, one month before the last issue.

VERDICT: a highly satisfying issue that shows the great job Simon and Don always do. Nots as purely awesome as the last issue but awesome still. So a nice 9 out of 10. Next month: Optimus gets involved! And Thunderwing lays waste to Nebulos. Who will stop him?

Posted by Fanbot at 9:31 pm, THURSDAY 10 December

Going Backwards - Stormbringer #1

TRANSFORMERS: STORMBRINGER #1
Written by SIMON FURMAN
Art by DON FIGUEROA
Colors by JOSH BURCHAM
Covers by Figueroa

OK, my fellow Transfans! Welcome back to another one of the Fanbot's Going Backwards reviews, where we take a look back at some of the best Transformers comics from IDW. This week my offering is a review of Transformers: Stormbringer #1. Let's dive straight in and see "what lies beneath" (Dreamwave comic joke. Whether or not you get it may define your Transfandom):

SYNOPSIS: In flashback, a dark figure stands amidst roiling flames, as someone (later revealed as Optimus Prime) narrates. Shirting to the present, Jetfire and the Technobots are in orbit around Cybertron, where we learn that the planet has been uninhabitable and off-limits for around seven hundred stellar cycles. Discovering an Energon trace, they break protocol, activate shields and head down to check it out. Prime's flashback continues to describe Autobots and Decepticons united against the menace, interrupted by a priority signal from Prowl's detachment of Autobots on Earth. On Cybertron, Jetfire recounts the warnings by Thunderwing (a Decepticon scientist) that the planet was dying due to the stresses placed on it by the Transformers' civil war. Then the landing party is attacked by a group of Decepticons whilst the other two Technobots back on the shuttle are taken out by further attackers. They regain consciousness to the sight of Thunderwing's as-yet-unmoving body and the chanting group who are trying to resurrect him...

THE ART: Obviously Don Figueroa drew this before taking on his highly controversial movie-eqsue art style. And although in my newness to the Transfandom I have not seen his other work with Dreamwave, the art for this is just top notch. Expert use of lines that convey perfectly the pure grittiness and hardcore of Cybertron as a dead husk of a world. His storytelling has almost no equal -- the scenes with Bludgeon and co. in their light-warping armor, and the purely beautiful cover to the right. No matter his style, Don has the TFs absolutely down pat. Josh Burcham with his painted style sends the artwork to new heights of pleasure. His warm palette is great for the copious amounts of fire and brimstone (Revelation much?) and makes my purchase totallyworth it. But wait, there's more. Read on for the full scoop.

THE STORY: Ah, Simon Furman. The great one. of course, his overuse of cliches and the infamous, used-as-every-second-word Furmanisms annoy slightly, but make me smile and enjoy the issue even more. I am always happy with the complex and realistic (if sometimes a bit too Marvel with the fallibility factor) character. Jetfire is the brooding, quiet, and philosophical scientist he should be, the Technobots brilliant and wordy yet with some definite flair and fun that makes them more interesting.

A calculating, antisocial bunch of Autobot prodigies? Hello, that's what we have Perceptor for. Strafe (pictured above) with his reluctance and timidness is good to see. And the portrayal of Cybertron of a barren, lifeless husk of a planet caused by the millions of years of war is very cool and realistic. A sort of Cybertron equivalent of Watchmen, if you will. So all round the story is well-crafted and is a great portrayal of a more realistic Transformerverse -- Marvel Ultimates eat your heart out. So, results overall:

ART RATING: 9.5 out of 10

STORY RATING: 10 out of 10

OVERALL RATING: 10 out of 10

ERRORS: On the cover, Jetfire sports Autobot symbols from a fan-made font, one that erroneously gives the symbol three hashes on each side of the forehead instead of two. The placement of symbols is particularly bad in this issue, with the contours rarely conforming to the contours of the surface they're placed on. In fact, the symbols on Jetfire are so badly photoshopped in they actually erase some of Don Figueroa's pencilling near the edges of the symbols. In the flashback on page 7, Megatron's chest is missing the "squiggle" design seen in all the other flashbacks featuring him. On page 19, all three word balloons are attributed to Afterburner, though they read like they should be attributed to Afterburner, Nosecone, and then Afterburner again. This error was corrected when the issue was published in trade paperback.

VERDICT: A beautiful and expertly executed issue that demonstrates the cred of both Furman and Figueroa. Burcham adds his awesome palette to the mix as well. A solid 10 out of 10! Next month: THUNDERWING!!

Posted by Fanbot at 10:45 pm, WEDNESDAY 9 December

Blastosaurus Halloween Special review

BLASTOSAURUS HALLOWEEN SPECIAL (SQUARE PLANET 09)
Written by RICHARD FAIRGRAY & TERRY JONES
Art and Covers by Fairgray

With creator Richard Fairgray signing on with Jeff Katz's American Original Press, Blastosaurus has fully left obscurity and is breaking into mainstream press at last. As a sort of parting gift to all the fans who read Blasto when he was self-published, Fairgray and Jones made the Halloween Special, available only at the Auckland Armageddon Expo. Here's the scoop:

SYNOPSIS: Freak Out City, the day after Halloween. A mum walks into a bookshop, looking for something to quiet her babbling son Patterson. The cashier, a weird man called Lloyd who speaks with random inflections, begins his tale...

There was once an insane man who lured kids into a forest and killed them in horrific ways. He was eventually caught but escaped from the asylum!

Meanwhile, Blasto's kid friends -- Alana, Sam, Emma and leader Richard -- come to the insane "wizard's" house. He convinces the kids to accompany him to the forest. Elsewhere. Blasto is relaxing in his flat when his colleague Naomi Fenton walks in dressed as a zombie. She tries to get him to come to the police Halloween party, but fails. Then they receive word that the wizard has escaped. So, while Fenton goes partying, Blasto goes to the asylum and is told that the wizard is obsessed with a book called the Grey Tales. The wizard wanted to kill monsters by taking their blood -- and thought the dressed-up kids were the monsters. Blasto is called by Richard's mum Paula, who can't find him. By sheer coincidence, he disappeared off a street where the wizard "used" to live.

Meanwhile in the forest, the kids have been hung in the trees, surrounded by the skeletons of past kid victims. They try to escape when the wizard cuts Richard's hand and takes his blood.

Blasto enters the wizard's house and discovers bloody corpses hanging from the ceiling and passages from the Grey Tales written in blood on the wall.

Back in the forest, the kids finally get down and run for it. The wizard follows them just as Blasto arrives on the scene and arrests the wizard, who hallucinates Blasto as a distorted evil ogre.

Lloyd finishes his story and is told that this happened last night. The story has no effect on Patterson, who continues babbling about the wizard. His mum remarks that maybe he should go live with his father.

At the police station, Blasto tells Fenton that the wizard's book was blank and had nothing written in it. Just then, they walk into the wizard's cell to find it empty with the same passage in his house on the glass wall, scrawled in blood.

THE ART: I really like what Fairgray has done with the art style for this one shot. He enhances his typical with distorted, abstract panels, heavy use of lines and patterns -- which makes it look like a nouveau noir comic, which is so cool -- and distorted views of the wizard that make him look like something out of a hallucination. Fairgray has also improved his art quality, with the characters looking more real and more diverse use of angles. This adds a lot to the issue as a whole and makes it look just exquisite. The issue is printed on special paper with a hand-stamped title to add to its exclusive status. But the art is not without fault: Fairgray obviously needs to darken up the black lineart in Photoshop because it's blatantly clear where he's used a different pen. There are slight differences in the blackness which annoy me slightly. And lastly, I really like the speech bubbles Richard uses with the wizard but the hand lettering looks amateurish. The right computer font could really complete this series.  But I am really very satisfied with the beautiful job Fairgray has done.

THE STORY: In typical Blastosaurus fare, the Halloween Special mixes puns and humor with gore and horror. Fairgray is good at puns and makes it funny, and is disturbingly good at creating horrific scenes (dead kids covered in blood hanging from ceilings? *Shudder*) that would make any horror nut chuck his popcorn up. The story flows well and reads like a good quality TV episode.  The dialogue has real class and makes you laugh -- especially Paula not even knowing what a mummy is -- and Fenton's pun remarks  jerk Commissioner Harris dressed as a bee is just classic. But there are a few flaws. Firstly, I don't believe Richard and co. would be SO stupid as to follow a weird adult into a dark forest. I know they're pretty confident, but they're fraggin' 12! Surely they'd be smart enough to not do so? But I'm not looking too far into this as I love the story and was gripped. Also, I'm a bit confused as to how the wizard kills kids who he thinks are monsters when we're told he wants to kill the other characters in the Grey Tales. I'm sure there's an explanation but I'm still kinda confused. The story overall is well-written and has good flow and realism to it.

ERRORS: On page 5, Lloyd describes Fenton and Blasto telling the doctor about the wizard when it should be him telling them about him. That is all, but see above for some more slip-ups.

FAVE QUOTE: Sam: "I got heaps of sour death balls."
Richard: "Trade you for the apple your mum gave me?"
Sam: "Do I look crazy to you?" [Says the kid dressed as a mental patient with a cage on his head.]

VERDICT: a thouroughly well-done send-off for the self-published Blastosaurus. Some minor plot slip-ups, but I really loved this one. Hope it gets reprinted by AOP. Rated 8.5 out of 10.

Posted by Fanbot at 9:52 pm, MONDAY 7 December 2009

operate432, where art thou?

Big Small Comix.com's first follower hasn't been here for almost two weeks now. Does anyone know where operate432 aka Shadow is? Just trying to find him. Yes I know, this is kinda stupid, but it would be nice to know what my first fan is up to. Uh, that's all for now folks ... Oh wait, no it isn't. Welcome to comic review expert Rokk Krinn, who just started following BSC.com less than a week ago. Nice to have you on board! Check out Rokk's awesome high-quality comic blog at:

http://blog.comicbookrevolution.net/

See you soon for more of Fanbot's quality reviews, here at Big Small Comix!

Posted by Fanbot at 10:01 pm, SATURDAY 5 December

TRANSFORMERS #2 PREVIEW

THE TRANSFORMERS #2 (IDW, 2009)
Written by MIKE COSTA
Art by DON FIGUEROA
Colors by JAMES BROWN
Covers by Figueora, ANDREW WILDMAN

“Things Fall Apart,” Part 1: After the shocking events at the end of last issue, the AUTOBOTS are in total disarray. An unexpected leader rises, and unlikely alliances are made as writer Mike Costa and superstar artist Don Figueroa continue their era-defining run!

32 pages, $3.99.

Pretty cool, don't you think? And it seems Costa and Figueroa are doing even more reinventing of our favorite bots. New designs and personalities in abundance! From this preview I've spotted:

• Jetfire has been completely revamped into his new body (previously seen in the image section of this USA Today article) and has somehow come to Earth in the three years between now and AHM.
• There's a strange new bot whom I can't recognize in the top left of page 5's last panel. Any ideas?
• Is Spike Witwicky coming out of a prositute's house or something? He has obviously spent the night with some dodgy-looking woman. Naughty Spike, what would Daniel say about this?
• Brawn has also made an unexpected appearance. How'd he get here?
• Lastly, Omega Supreme, on the RI cover, has also been Donified with a movie-esque design and a predominantly white color scheme. Hmm, interesting...

Make sure you catch this one, out mid-this month! Farewell...

Posted by Fanbot at 5:23 pm, FRIDAY 4 December

Last Stand of the Wreckers interview w. James Roberts & Nick Roche at OSH

The Transformers UK site One Shall Stand.com has been sent a beautiful gift from the publisher heavens; AN INTERVIEW WITH NICK ROCHE AND JAMES ROBERTS, CREATORS OF LAST STAND OF THE WRECKERS!! This is just too awesome. Their interview delves deeply into the minds of the creators and hints at a significant body count. Here's the full interview (contains teasers but no spoilers) at this URL:

www.oneshallstand.com/articles/wreckers.html

There, go and chew on that my Transfans!  And, just because I'm generous, I've pasted below James Roberts' teaser on Last Stand of the Wreckers' plot:

OneShallStand: What can you tell us about the story[...]?

JR: Apart from the fact that it'll be one of those Transformers stories that defines the new century? Apart from confirming that it contains enough gloves-off, teeth-bared, spine-shattering robot violence to give even hardened TF fans palpitations? Apart from the hitherto unplumbed dramatic depths it, er, plumbs?
'Last Stand...' is firmly in the here-and-now, but it takes place far away form Earth and the mainstream TF storyline; and while it's absolutely rooted in the wider TF Universe, its remote, largely self-contained setting gives us a chance to do some unexpected things and hopefully pull the rug out from readers' feet now and then. Which is always good.

I think the story strikes a delicate balance between action and characterization, between widescreen set pieces and those intimate moments that maybe you don't get too often in the TF Universe. The prelude to the mission itself and certain 'catch-your-breath' sequences on G-9 lend themselves to quieter, dialogue-driven moments, and that gives us the opportunity to explore what it means to be a Wrecker. What sets them apart from their fellow Autobots? Why would somebody want to be join a glorified suicide squad? What happens once you've spent hundreds of years carrying out the kind of missions no-one else wants to touch? What does that do to you as a soldier - as a person?

We also had a chance to expand the Wrecker mythos - we've delved into their history a bit and gave them some sturdier roots. A proper backstory, with new characters and nemeses!

What I will say is that we've tried to push this story out in all directions. It's not just a then b then c then d; it's not a simple succession of events. There is mystery and intrigue and sustained delay. There are verbal asides and background details that become more significant as the series moves forward. I love it when seemingly innocuous comments or everyday events take on a new significance when considered in retrospect, and that's why we've aimed for in 'Last Stand...'. And besides, where's the fun in having everything laid out for you on a plate? Readers like to join the dots themselves. Guessing is good, and sometimes you can answer a question with another question - provided there's a pay-off at the end. And believe me, there's a hell of a pay off in issue 5.

You've gotta admit, that is pretty damn awesome. I just can't wait for this comic to start in January 2010. The rest of the interview basically says that James and Nick love working with each other and are a perfect team, that they're looking into what makes the Wreckers the Wreckers, they wanted to include Impactor (one-time Wreckers leader), and that the deaths will be significant to readers and have deep meaning. Looks to be a promising successor to Stormbringer. Here's that page by Roche and Burcham again:

Aaaand ... with that, Fanbot bids you farewell once more. See you soon!

Posted by Fanbot at 8:13 pm, THURSDAY 3 December

IDW Transformers solicits for Dec 2009

Welcome to December, and Christmas is just around the corner. To get into the Christmas spirit I've started doing the comics I promised my parents, and persuaded my dad to look for Masterpiece toys. Hasn't the year flown by? This time last year we were entering the halfway point for McCarthy's All Hail Megatron. But anyway. Here's the comics that IDW has on offer for us this month:

THE TRANSFORMERS #2
Written by MIKE COSTA
Art by DON FIGUEROA
Colors by JAMES BROWN
Covers by Figueroa, ANDREW WILDMAN

"Things Fall Apart," Part 1: After the shocking events at the end of last issue, the Autobots are in total disarray. An unexpected leader rises, and unlikely alliances are made.

32 pages, $3.99.

TRANSFORMERS: BUMBLEBEE #2

Story by ZANDER CANNON
Art by CHEE YANG ONG
Colors by MOOSE BAUMANN
Covers by Chee, GUIDO GUIDI

After a shakeup in Autobot leadership, Bumblebee finds himself leading a group that believes him to be unprepared for the job. An opportunity to radically improve the Autobots reputation arises and he accepts despite his reservations, embarking on a clandestine mission for the human military to find and disable all remaining rogue robots. 

32 pages, $3.99.

TRANSFORMERS BEST OF UK: PREY #5

Written by SIMON FURMAN

Art by VARIOUS

Colors by ANNIE HALFACREE

Covers by ANDREW GRIFFITH, interior art

Dinobot Swoop sets out alone to settle an old score with Divebomb, but gets more than he bargained for when the rest of the Predacons arrive. Continuing the collection of classic tales from across the pond.

32 pages, $3.99.

TRANSFORMERS TALES OF THE FALLEN: RAVAGE
Written by SIMON FURMAN
Art by ALEX MILNE
Colors by JOSH PEREZ
Covers by Milne
The momentous event that is Transformers: Nefarious kicks off with the sudden, shocking -- and silent -- reappearance of stealth agent Ravage. Thought destroyed in Revenge of the Fallen, Ravage is back. But who is pulling his strings, and what is his mysterious but crucial mission?

32 pages, $3.99.
And with that, Fanbot bids you farewell for now. Do NOT miss these!

Posted by Fanbot at 5:01 pm, WEDNESDAY 2 December

IDW Transformers solicits for Feb. 2010

A couple weeks back Transfans were provided with covers for Last Stand of the Wreckers #2 and Transformers #4. Now IDW has gone the whole cyber-hog and provided the full Transformers solicits for February 2010 -- that's slaggin' ages away, but you don't hear Fanbot complaining. Here's the full TF scoop for Feb:

THE TRANSFORMERS #4
Story by MIKE COSTA
Art by DON FIGUEROA
Colors by JAMES BROWN
Covers by Figueroa, ANDREW WILDMAN

His ambivalence cost him his allegiance. His unexpected betrayal set the stage for Autobot victory. His name is Thundercracker, and this issue reveals what he's been doing these past three years after his brutal expulsion from the Decepticons in All Hail Megatron! Costa and Figueroa show you perhaps the most unique transformation of all...

32 pages, $3.99.

TRANSFORMERS: BUMBLEBEE #3

Story by ZANDER CANNON

Art by CHEE YANG ONG

Colors by MOOSE BAUMANN

Covers by Chee, GUIDO GUIDI

"Things Fall Apart," Part 3: After leaving a decoy for the Skywatch colonel, Bumblebee embarks on a solo quest to find the device that will free the Autobots. He befriends the child of the one man who holds the device they need, and finally has to ask himself if what he's doing is right.

32 pages, $3.99.

TRANSFORMERS: LAST STAND OF THE WRECKERS #2

Story by NICK ROCHE & JAMES ROBERTS

Art by NICK ROCHE

Colors by JOSH BURCHAM

Covers by Roche, TREV HUTCHISON

The Autobots' finest begin their descent into hell, and all bets are off. The true nature of the Wreckers' mission is revealed and the reappearance of an old enemy drastically reduces the chances of anyone making it back alive.

32 pages, $3.99.

OK, that's it for another month, Watch this space for all the newest info on everything Transformers and comics, and if you missed out on your copy of Transformers #1, be sure to get the second printing, out on December 2nd.

Posted by Fanbot at 7:01 pm, WEDNESDAY 25 November

Going Backwards - All Hail Megatron #12 review

And so it ends ... well, at least until Coda and the ongoing series comes up. But for All Hail Megatron, the train stops at 12 issues. And what a wired journey it has been. A wonderful and intriguing strart quickly descended into a chaotic, inconsistent creative team that failed to impress at all. In the words of Christopher Lee; "let's see what the damage is..."

SYNOPSIS: A synopsis of this issue is available here at TF Archive.

THE ART: They've really done it this time. The creeative team really, really sucked in this issue. Guido for once does all the art, but the one man who has made this mess of a series bearable--Josh Burcham himself--has practically disappeared out of the issue. For the first 7 pages or so his awesome colors grace the pages (IDW previewed this to fool us into believing Josh was doing all of it, the deceitful skidplates), but then James Brown has to step in and completely ruin it with his sub-par coloring. He basically just does flat blocks that make Guidi's lines look messy and unprofessional. On top of that he makes loads of coloring errors--see errors section for the full story. So the art is terrible and frankly makes me sick. A despicable end. Good riddance to this issue.

THE STORY: I a rare display of half-decency, Shane doesn't actually do a bad job. Some good plot twists (Thundercracker saves the day!) and a story that feels reasonable. But Spike being a douchebag to the Autobots when they just saved NY from certain annihilation? Spike, you are a disrespectful spawn of a glitch. And Megs not killing Ops but leaving him to die (therefore not being able to confirm Op's death) is kinda creaky. And he killed off Hunter! I loved that guy. He was just starting to become an interesting character too. So for once, Shane McCarthy saves the day with this issue. But his convenient plot devices leave a bad taste in the mouth. Disappointing.

ERRORS:In the description of the Coda issues, #16 has Bumblebee's story as a second "Story 1" rather than "Story 2". Also, Guido Guidi is misspelled as "Guido Guido". When Prime talks to Spike on page 21, he's probably supposed to start with "Your people are free," not "Our people". James Brown continues to demonstrate his coloring fails by coloring the sides of Bumblebee's face yellow in one panel, making Thundercracker's vent-boobs boobs blue (they should be light grey), and Skywarp's vent-boobs dark grey (they should be light grey). Get it right, Brown.

FAVE QUOTE: Devastator: "No! You will not defeat Devastator! You are nothing!"
Omega Supreme: "Wrong. I am Omega Supreme!" [Omega gives his considerably more awsesome version of "I'm Batman."]

VERDICT: So, the damage is -- bad coloring, yucky messy art,  and even more convenient plot devices. Not better than last issue, but somehow more satisfying. But overall a sub-par end to what seemed to be a cool series. Next month: well, now it's on to reviewing all my old issues. See you soon. Rated 6 out of 10.

Posted by Fanbot at 4:17 pm, TUESDAY 24 November

Tales of the Fallen: the Fallen preview

OK, here's four pages of the fourth issue of Tales of the Fallen, with the spotlight falling on ... THE FALLEN! Here's the five pages:

Posted by Fanbot at 6:28 pm, MONDAY 23 November

TRANSFORMERS #1 REVIEW

Finally, after three years of miniseries and over 80 issues, IDW has launched an ongoing Transformers series. For the first time, the issue no. will keep rising, which for a fan like me is immensely rejuvenating. So here's my in-depth review of IDW's Transformers #1...

THE ART: This issue features the long-anticipated return of artist legend Don Figueroa. His new controversial movie-esque style was done- he says, to make the bots look less cartoony. Now, that aside, his drawing prowess is second to none. The strong, bold lines intricate detailing looks exquisite. I was immediately in love the moment I looked upon this issue. But the thing that ruins it for me is the faces. They make everyone look fugly and grotesque. Drift is perhaps the worst, looking just wrong. No more stoic ninja expression for you Mr Drift. But Prime and Roddy look just awesome! Prime with his silent, venerable stance, and the bold, badaft Roddy getting up Prime's tailpipe. Very well done. James Brown has met a lot of controversy for his coloring skills and I have to say he could do better, but his coloring is very adequate and looks very good with Don's lines. He subtly complements and enhances the art without dominating the page. So the butt-ugly faces annoy, but overall the art is plainly awesomely beautiful. Very good job.

THE STORY: Mike Costa has done some very interesting things with the situation on Earth and the character's reaction. Though in a very different way to Furman way back in Infiltration #0, Mike has gone back to basics, while at the same time turning everything on its head. The Autobots are back to hiding, though this time from the humans. The characters have reverted back to their essential, G1 cartoon personalities. Optimus is weak and over-protective of the humans, and Rodimus is no nonsense, badass that gets things done no matter the cost. This is a very good example of what happens when two very different Primes come together in the same continuity. So Mike is doing very intriguing things with this direction he is going in, and I'm interested to see how it develops. The dialogue isn't as  smooth as I'd like, but otherwise it's a very well done issue.

ERRORS: Wheeljack's flaps flow yellow instead of blue now. This may be just a coloring error (James Brown seems to make a lot of these) or a deliberate thing. Oh, and Ratchet's lower chin is colored red in one panel but its normal grey for the rest of the issue. Huh?

VERDICT: A well-exececuted (though nowhere near perfect) start to what looks to be a very promising ongoing series. WOOHOO!! Rated 9.75 out of 10.

Posted by Fanbot at 6:11 pm, MONDAY 23 November